Benefits of joining AMCD

AMCD provides members with:

Journal of Multicultural Counseling and Development, published quarterly. All members receive electronic access to the journal.

Website, multiculturalcounseling.org

Opportunities for professional growth and leadership development through participation in regional and state division activities, committees, special projects, the annual ACA convention, and the AMCD Leadership Development Workshop.

Assistance, when requested, in resolving professional issues.

Support through interactions with empathic professionals.

A network of 25 state divisions.

Opportunities for publication of research and theoretical papers about multicultural counseling and development.

Advocacy and development of multicultural counseling competencies as guidelines to the profession of counseling.

Benefits of Joining ACA

“When you become a member of ACA, you become part of the largest network of counseling professionals in the world. That means direct access to the resources and education you need to stay at the top of your game, unlimited ways to connect with other counseling professionals for guidance and support, and powerful representation on the topics and issues that affect your career.”

These include such tools as professional liability insurance, ethics consultation, career resources, savings on continuing education, and advocacy.

If you are already a member of ACA and wish to add membership in AMCD to your current ACA membership, please call ACA Member Services at 800-347-6647 x222, M-F, 8:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m., ET.

August 2018 Individual Member Highlights

The Membership Committee is excited to welcome ALL members! This month we are featuring Laura Pignato and Delishia Pittman.

Laura Pignato

Hi, my name is Laura Pignato and I am a Doctoral Student at the College of William & Mary in the Counselor Education & Supervision program. I am also a resident-in-training and work at two agencies, the New Horizons Family Counseling Center and a transition shelter for women with their children experiencing housing instability.

“We have to talk about liberating minds as well as liberating society” – Angela Davis

My experience at the ACA conference this year provided motivation and inspiration for continued goals this upcoming year. Counselors for Social Justice (CSJ) held our first live-streamed town hall for attendees at ACA, which I hope to improve and provide at the next conference, and Dr. Anna Flores shared the goals for continued collaboration with AMCD as well as other ACA subdivisions. Dr. Shon Smith has also spoken to this goal continuously and at the recent Splash event, so having the opportunity to hear leaders in the field speak to the continued collaboration through different formats was wonderful. Another highlight of the conference was having the opportunity to connect with several AMCD members while presenting with Dr. Natoya Haskins and Dr. Leonissa Johnson, which brought a feeling of community.

Students and attendees of our ACA presentation, Examining African American Women Graduate Students’ Affinity Group Experiences, have shared their desire to be a part of a group that specifically addresses the intersectionality of being an African American woman in the field of counseling. Previously, Dr. Natoya Haskins created an affinity group for African American female graduate students at a PWI that group participants described as a source of support and provided access to professional resources. We hope to use this platform to encourage any African American female graduate students in counseling that would like to participate in an online affinity group format to contact us for a new Affinity group that we are starting this fall (please email me at lapignato@email.wm.edu for further information). Additionally, we are acquiring a space for affinity group participants to meet at the Southern Association of Counselor Education and Supervision (SACES) conference held in October 2018.

Delishia Pittman

Hi, my name is Delishia Pittman, I am an Assistant Professor and Director for the Clinical Mental Health Counseling Program at George Washington University. I also serve as a Licensed Psychologist and Licensed Professional Counselor in the District of Columbia

“An apple tree is still an apple tree before it bears any fruit.” – Author Unknown

AMCD has been such an integral part of my development as a professional counselor, especially early in my career. The knowledge, professional relationships and validation I experienced through programming at the ACA

conference had a direct role in this. I’m glad to see that this impact continues for other new professionals and students, alike.

My current projects extend the focus of my health disparities research agenda to include investigations of sexual health vulnerabilities, including STI and HIV infection risk behaviors in heterosexual Black women. These projects seek to model the complex relationships between psycho-socio-cultural contextual factors in STI and HIV infection risk among Black college women.

August 2018 State Branch Division Highlights

Please join us in celebrating our State Division Chapter of the Month!

“During the 2018 North Carolina Counseling Association Conference, the NC Association of Multicultural Counseling and Development received an award for the Most Effective Membership Drive/Recruitment. The award was based on a mixer held at Beyu Caffe on Thursday, February 23, 2017, in Durham, NC. The event was entitled, Mind, Body, and Art: A Social Justice Mixer. The event was designed to increase enrollment as well as address the health issues of those in marginalized communities. One goal of the organization for the 2018-19 year is to continue to increase membership and engagement with area universities in promoting awareness of social justice and advocacy needs in our region.” – Dr. La Vera Brown